What do you think?
Rate this book
Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power
On a January day in the depths of mid-western winter Dorothy Atalla expected more of the same: snow, ice and gray skies. But when she lay down on her living room carpet to relax with music, she had an experience which changed her life. Inexplicably, a vision of a radiant and beneficent female presence appeared to her. This astonishing event was only the beginning of a journey she could never have imagined in her wildest dreams. That vision foreshadowed the dialogue with a deity which is the essence of this book.
- GenresSpirituality
292 pages
First published May 1, 2010
4 people are currently reading
439 people want to read
About the author
Dorothy Atalla
1 book21 followersDorothy (Chickee to her friends) would be the first to admit that she had no idea that her trip in the 70’s to ancient ruins of Petra in Jordan would be the beginning of an inner journey that would transform her life. Never having heard of Petra, Chickee went there on a casual invitation. While exploring Petra with her family, Chickee found herself profoundly affected by ancient Petra.
When she was exploring the site, she was fascinated with how Petra’s people had lived, what their living arts were, and their traditions for death. At the time of her visit to Petra, her goals were modest; one goal being that of encouraging her sons to perceive themselves as global citizens by way of their father’s Middle Eastern heritage. Secondly, she had always hoped to provide her sons with a well-rounded, cultural, and academic education.
Seven years after her trip, in a meditative state, Chickee had her first encounter with the Goddess. Although initially Chickee was astonished and doubtful, she continued to meditate and eventually became inspired to research and explore the new world introduced to her. Out of her dialogues with the Goddess she felt a spiritual empowerment she had not previously known. In addition to dealing with her own doubt and confusion, Chickee felt the need for an authentic vocabulary for her experiences.
Chickee hoped to ground her ongoing dialogues with the Goddess with evidence of humanity’s recognition of Her in other historical periods. She entered areas of inquiry beyond what she learned as an undergraduate. As a Phi Beta Kappa graduate from the University of Delaware, Chickee had received an endowed fellowship for a master’s degree in English Literature. Her studies led to ancient history, archaeology, depth psychology, quantum physics, transpersonal psychology and the evolution of consciousness, and the study of ancient religion and mythology.
Chickee says, “My hope for the readers of Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power" is that they feel they are experiencing the voice of the Goddess. Every woman is part of Her Story, emerging in our times, a story which includes affirmation of women’s wisdom and the spiritual power of the feminine.”
Family continues to be vital to Chickee, her husband, two sons, daughter-in-law, and two granddaughters have the good fortune to live in the same city where they enjoy each other’s company. Books continue to be among her best companions, as they have from childhood.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
Want to read
May 15, 2010Well-written, intriguing
November 26, 2021
A big thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I'm always so thankful to have these opportunities!
Today we have a rating of 3 Triquetras out of 5. This was a good read, but it wasn't my favorite.
I think that the cover is gorgeous, and really sets us up for the type of energy we have within the book - this all launches off at Petra and so having Petra on the cover is only natural.
This site was so incredibly central to the author's experience that anything but Petra as the cover wouldn't have made sense at all.
I want to say that Dorothy Atalla's writing voice is very lovely, and quite likable. It's conversational, easy to read, easy to get into a rhythm, and the conversation flows wonderfully. As the title implies, "Coversations with the Goddess" is a book filled with the transcriptions of meditations that Atalla has had, and the questions the come up for a modern American woman when having lengthy discussions with the Goddess.
While these conversations were fascinating, I felt a little left behind as someone who is nonbinary and queer. Conversation about "females" and housework, and the stereotypes lost my interest.
Also, as fascinating as the transcripts are, it was hard for me to focus - to find interest - with reading someone else's meditative conversations. It was set up with the channeled information in italics, with Atalla's own responses and questions in regular print.
I think having SOME of these would have been lovely, but the formatting continues into the second part, and it was a difficult read for me.
I lost interest with the intense conversation surrounding chakras, as I don't utilize them in my practice. This isn't to say others wouldn't find this sort of information useful, but I personally didn't receive much from those specific messages.
Further, as a non-binary person the intense discussion of what a woman's or "female's" body is or should be was also lost on me and made me quite uncomfortable.
Overall, I believe that if the person reading this had a longer attention span, and was deeply invested in previously channeled messages from a Goddess, this would be the book for them, especially if they were cis-women.
As a non-binary person, the messages were nearly lost on me, and I would rather have had exercises or guided meditation scripts to discover personal information first hand from the Goddess, rather than read what felt like Atalla's meditation record diary.
Valuable information, but I don't believe I was a right fit for this audience.
~ R
Today we have a rating of 3 Triquetras out of 5. This was a good read, but it wasn't my favorite.
I think that the cover is gorgeous, and really sets us up for the type of energy we have within the book - this all launches off at Petra and so having Petra on the cover is only natural.
This site was so incredibly central to the author's experience that anything but Petra as the cover wouldn't have made sense at all.
I want to say that Dorothy Atalla's writing voice is very lovely, and quite likable. It's conversational, easy to read, easy to get into a rhythm, and the conversation flows wonderfully. As the title implies, "Coversations with the Goddess" is a book filled with the transcriptions of meditations that Atalla has had, and the questions the come up for a modern American woman when having lengthy discussions with the Goddess.
While these conversations were fascinating, I felt a little left behind as someone who is nonbinary and queer. Conversation about "females" and housework, and the stereotypes lost my interest.
Also, as fascinating as the transcripts are, it was hard for me to focus - to find interest - with reading someone else's meditative conversations. It was set up with the channeled information in italics, with Atalla's own responses and questions in regular print.
I think having SOME of these would have been lovely, but the formatting continues into the second part, and it was a difficult read for me.
I lost interest with the intense conversation surrounding chakras, as I don't utilize them in my practice. This isn't to say others wouldn't find this sort of information useful, but I personally didn't receive much from those specific messages.
Further, as a non-binary person the intense discussion of what a woman's or "female's" body is or should be was also lost on me and made me quite uncomfortable.
Overall, I believe that if the person reading this had a longer attention span, and was deeply invested in previously channeled messages from a Goddess, this would be the book for them, especially if they were cis-women.
As a non-binary person, the messages were nearly lost on me, and I would rather have had exercises or guided meditation scripts to discover personal information first hand from the Goddess, rather than read what felt like Atalla's meditation record diary.
Valuable information, but I don't believe I was a right fit for this audience.
~ R
Read
September 14, 2021Review by Miriam Raven for Goddess Pages
This book is a surprise. It does not fulfill any expectations a reader might have – and this is a good thing. In hybrid ways and by an eclectic combination of personal spiritual encounters, visions of a Goddess past and a Goddess future, and theoretical critiques of texts dealing with the archetypal feminine in a psychological and evolutionary perspective, the book leads the readers to new approaches to the divine feminine. If you are willing to follow the author through her labyrinthine journey you will be rewarded by a thought-provoking and ultimately very stimulating read.
Nothing is as it seems, not even the title. Deliberately evoking the best-selling New Age "Conversations with God" by Neale Donald Walsch, Dorothy Atalla's book turns out to be a very different text. For what she channels is less about her personal life but more about theoretical and cultural questions about human evolution and the worship of the Goddess. The subtitle "Encounter at Petra, Place of Power" evokes a travel account focused on Jordan's historical city famous for its rock cut architecture – a place I always wanted to visit. But this is not what 'Conversations with the Goddess" turns out to be, even though the author's personal encounter happens at Petra.
The book starts with Dorothy Atalla's awakening to the divine feminine at this place of power where she feels a veil is lifted – one of the many veils of the Goddess – and she intensely feels a presence that comes from the past and into her own life. Her outer journey leads to an inner journey. Years later, this encounter sparks her dialogue with the Goddess that she shares with the reader. Guided by the author, we delve into fascinating archaeological and historical wisdom that is meticulously researched and also arises out of the meditative journeys the author undertakes. We get glimpses of ancient civilizations and ancient memories in mesmerizing scenes from the past. And we are presented with a dialogue with what the author calls "the Presence" about the divine feminine as such – the heart of the book What is female power? How can it be conceived of beyond the culturally constructed gender roles we grow up with? How can a balance between the masculine and the feminine be envisioned? How are gods and humans linked and how can we recognize the divine within ourselves?
Conversations with the Goddess is informed by the author's personal questions and her extensive reading – and Goddess-loving people will know the reading material the author discusses. She especially asks "the Presence" about the theses of Erich Neumann's "The Great Mother" and Ken Wilber's "Up from Eden". Both authors have been received as authorities concerning the archetype of the dark Mother Goddess and concerning evolutionary explanations of human society and the psyche. In the course of the dialogue, a critique of one-sided patriarchal conceptions about the "dark" Mother archetype emerges and – what is central to me – the dialogue counters and criticizes the evolutionary view of humanity's necessary progression from a seemingly childlike state of oneness with the dark Mother to a ego-driven, patriarchal thinking that privileges "light" over darkness and separation over connection. This view has heavily influenced Western thinking – male authors as different as Bachofen, Engels, Neumann, Fromm and Wilber have long propagated the evolutionary necessity of leaving the unseparated state of being one with a Mother (Goddess) in order to develop what we call individuality.
"Conversations with the Goddess" proposes a different view – of our past as well as of our future. And here this book gives the reader much food for thought. In this time of great change, we do need positive, life-sustaining visions of the future to inspire us – and we need to discuss them. This book provides this inspiration as well as material for discussion. Dorothy Atalla's experience is worth reading – an experience that provides a glimpse into how our human past could have been and a glimpse into a future of gender equality, a close connection with nature and the cosmos, a future where together with the Goddess we can become aware again of our own divine nature – and act on it. And it will not happen without the awareness of the divine feminine. Therefore, we need records of such experiences and we need to voice our own experiences to contribute to a future in which the Goddess and the divine feminine is again recognised and honoured.
The book provides material that is moving, inspiring and thought-provoking: it raises questions about the most central issues we need to be aware of in order to step into a different future now. Therefore, this book is the ideal material for a Goddess and spirituality reading group – discussions guaranteed!
This book is a surprise. It does not fulfill any expectations a reader might have – and this is a good thing. In hybrid ways and by an eclectic combination of personal spiritual encounters, visions of a Goddess past and a Goddess future, and theoretical critiques of texts dealing with the archetypal feminine in a psychological and evolutionary perspective, the book leads the readers to new approaches to the divine feminine. If you are willing to follow the author through her labyrinthine journey you will be rewarded by a thought-provoking and ultimately very stimulating read.
Nothing is as it seems, not even the title. Deliberately evoking the best-selling New Age "Conversations with God" by Neale Donald Walsch, Dorothy Atalla's book turns out to be a very different text. For what she channels is less about her personal life but more about theoretical and cultural questions about human evolution and the worship of the Goddess. The subtitle "Encounter at Petra, Place of Power" evokes a travel account focused on Jordan's historical city famous for its rock cut architecture – a place I always wanted to visit. But this is not what 'Conversations with the Goddess" turns out to be, even though the author's personal encounter happens at Petra.
The book starts with Dorothy Atalla's awakening to the divine feminine at this place of power where she feels a veil is lifted – one of the many veils of the Goddess – and she intensely feels a presence that comes from the past and into her own life. Her outer journey leads to an inner journey. Years later, this encounter sparks her dialogue with the Goddess that she shares with the reader. Guided by the author, we delve into fascinating archaeological and historical wisdom that is meticulously researched and also arises out of the meditative journeys the author undertakes. We get glimpses of ancient civilizations and ancient memories in mesmerizing scenes from the past. And we are presented with a dialogue with what the author calls "the Presence" about the divine feminine as such – the heart of the book What is female power? How can it be conceived of beyond the culturally constructed gender roles we grow up with? How can a balance between the masculine and the feminine be envisioned? How are gods and humans linked and how can we recognize the divine within ourselves?
Conversations with the Goddess is informed by the author's personal questions and her extensive reading – and Goddess-loving people will know the reading material the author discusses. She especially asks "the Presence" about the theses of Erich Neumann's "The Great Mother" and Ken Wilber's "Up from Eden". Both authors have been received as authorities concerning the archetype of the dark Mother Goddess and concerning evolutionary explanations of human society and the psyche. In the course of the dialogue, a critique of one-sided patriarchal conceptions about the "dark" Mother archetype emerges and – what is central to me – the dialogue counters and criticizes the evolutionary view of humanity's necessary progression from a seemingly childlike state of oneness with the dark Mother to a ego-driven, patriarchal thinking that privileges "light" over darkness and separation over connection. This view has heavily influenced Western thinking – male authors as different as Bachofen, Engels, Neumann, Fromm and Wilber have long propagated the evolutionary necessity of leaving the unseparated state of being one with a Mother (Goddess) in order to develop what we call individuality.
"Conversations with the Goddess" proposes a different view – of our past as well as of our future. And here this book gives the reader much food for thought. In this time of great change, we do need positive, life-sustaining visions of the future to inspire us – and we need to discuss them. This book provides this inspiration as well as material for discussion. Dorothy Atalla's experience is worth reading – an experience that provides a glimpse into how our human past could have been and a glimpse into a future of gender equality, a close connection with nature and the cosmos, a future where together with the Goddess we can become aware again of our own divine nature – and act on it. And it will not happen without the awareness of the divine feminine. Therefore, we need records of such experiences and we need to voice our own experiences to contribute to a future in which the Goddess and the divine feminine is again recognised and honoured.
The book provides material that is moving, inspiring and thought-provoking: it raises questions about the most central issues we need to be aware of in order to step into a different future now. Therefore, this book is the ideal material for a Goddess and spirituality reading group – discussions guaranteed!
October 7, 2021
Powerful and empowering!
Dorothy Atalla tells her story in Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power. I haven't read work from this author before, and this was one book I won't soon forget. Some may say it's a book of fiction, but I truly believe the words written by Atalla, and how beliefs can bring one peace, and the feeling of completeness. Atalla was fortunate to have such a spiritual visit, and then be able to share the experience. It's a magnificent read, especially if you are someone like me, and are constantly searching for something to add positivity to my soul. I read the book once, but I know I will read it again, as I took a lot of notes, not just for the review, but for myself as well. You don't have to believe to read it, but if you have an ounce of faith, you may believe after reading this. It's a very spiritual book, but it's also empowering, knowing it's all right to feel what you feel, and maybe this can help you feel better, and just maybe, you'll have your own conversations with the Goddess. Masterfully written! Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power is a definite recommendation by Amy's Bookshelf Reviews. I look forward to reading many more stories by this author.
Dorothy Atalla tells her story in Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power. I haven't read work from this author before, and this was one book I won't soon forget. Some may say it's a book of fiction, but I truly believe the words written by Atalla, and how beliefs can bring one peace, and the feeling of completeness. Atalla was fortunate to have such a spiritual visit, and then be able to share the experience. It's a magnificent read, especially if you are someone like me, and are constantly searching for something to add positivity to my soul. I read the book once, but I know I will read it again, as I took a lot of notes, not just for the review, but for myself as well. You don't have to believe to read it, but if you have an ounce of faith, you may believe after reading this. It's a very spiritual book, but it's also empowering, knowing it's all right to feel what you feel, and maybe this can help you feel better, and just maybe, you'll have your own conversations with the Goddess. Masterfully written! Conversations with the Goddess: Encounter at Petra, Place of Power is a definite recommendation by Amy's Bookshelf Reviews. I look forward to reading many more stories by this author.
January 6, 2022
Conversations with the Goddess is about a woman’s personal spiritual growth journey. The book takes the reader on a journey of evolutionary perspective. It provides new approaches to the divine feminine and begins with Dorothy communicating with the Goddess, personally connecting to a much bigger story.
Dorothy’s many journeys with the Goddess are enjoyable to read and certainly make you ponder history, mythology, religion, archaeology, depth, transpersonal psychology, and quantum physics. The book may not be for everyone, but it stands alone to be a fascinating read.
The author believes that the answers free the psychic energy from the spiritual conflict, and that is an empowering notion. The literature is written well. It is not a short read and is filled with exciting and thought-provoking premises.
I recommend this book to spiritual healing readers and deep thinkers.
Dorothy’s many journeys with the Goddess are enjoyable to read and certainly make you ponder history, mythology, religion, archaeology, depth, transpersonal psychology, and quantum physics. The book may not be for everyone, but it stands alone to be a fascinating read.
The author believes that the answers free the psychic energy from the spiritual conflict, and that is an empowering notion. The literature is written well. It is not a short read and is filled with exciting and thought-provoking premises.
I recommend this book to spiritual healing readers and deep thinkers.
August 9, 2022
Conversations with the Goddess is an alluring read that will take you on a journey deep into the Feminine Mysteries, shining a light on the feminine wisdom traditions. This book is a wonderful body of work and one of those books you can pick up and refer to again and again. Dorothy takes you on her journey of discovery and will awaken a deep remembrance within you as you open to the messages of the Goddess. I really enjoyed reading this book!
August 12, 2011
"CONVERSATIONS WITH THE GODDESS" BY DOROTHY ATALLA
This book was beautifully written and filled with ancient and historical traditions. The journey this novel takes you on is inspirational and leaves you with a sense of hope and euphoria.
Dorothy Atalla has a talent that gives her the ability to easily put spirituality into perspective and inspires you to grasp tightly to faith.
-Kitty Bullard / Great Minds Think Aloud Book Club
Read more: http://www.greatmindsthinkaloud.probo...
This book was beautifully written and filled with ancient and historical traditions. The journey this novel takes you on is inspirational and leaves you with a sense of hope and euphoria.
Dorothy Atalla has a talent that gives her the ability to easily put spirituality into perspective and inspires you to grasp tightly to faith.
-Kitty Bullard / Great Minds Think Aloud Book Club
Read more: http://www.greatmindsthinkaloud.probo...
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews